Placeholder Image

Subtitles section Play video

  • Alana Yzola: On a quiet residential block in New Orleans

  • stands one of the most historic Creole restaurants

  • in the city, Dooky Chase.

  • Customer: This is a Creole icon, in terms of food.

  • If you want to say that you have truly

  • had a taste of New Orleans, Dooky Chase is the place.

  • Alana: From classic gumbo to unique seafood stews,

  • this 78-year-old spot has helped put

  • New Orleans cuisine and Southern culture on the map.

  • Stella Chase-Reese: Dooky Chase's restaurant

  • has history behind it.

  • History which we are very, very proud of.

  • and award-winning chef Leah Chase.

  • Stella: Our business was started by African American family.

  • My mother and my father expanded the restaurant

  • and made it fine dining with very Creole-oriented dishes.

  • Alana: Leah's story and legacy for amazing Creole food

  • got Disney's attention,

  • and she served as the inspiration behind

  • the 2009 animated film "The Princess and the Frog."

  • Clip: This is the best gumbo I've ever tasted.

  • Alana: Dooky Chase has always celebrated diversity.

  • In fact, it's New Orleans'

  • only African American establishment

  • featured in the Negro Motorist Green Book

  • that's still in operation today.

  • Throughout the years, it's hosted countless figures,

  • from presidents to actors to musicians.

  • Leah died in June 2019, but her family

  • is continuing Dooky Chase's delicious legacy.

  • Creole cuisine started in Louisiana

  • in the early to mid 1800s,

  • when the territory was still occupied by France.

  • However, these dishes also combine influences

  • from a multitude of cultures,

  • including Spanish, German, West African,

  • Caribbean, and Choctaw Native American.

  • The dishes are known for their rich, thick sauces

  • and bold flavors.

  • At Dooky Chase's, stuffed shrimp

  • is one of their best sellers.

  • Each freshly caught shrimp is stuffed

  • with a generous serving of crab meat.

  • The crab is seasoned with a special blend of spices.

  • They're floured twice in white and yellow flour,

  • then fried to golden brown.

  • Customer: You can tell the difference in fresh shrimp,

  • and I love Dooky's because you get it fresh.

  • Alana: Another best seller?

  • Leah Chase's Shrimp Clemenceau.

  • Stella: She came up with that dish because she said:

  • "We can't always do fried food.

  • Everybody doesn't always eat fried food."

  • Alana: The chef sautés shrimp in wine, butter, and garlic,

  • then adds in green peas, mushrooms, Irish diced potatoes,

  • and a sliced strawberry.

  • It's a very hearty dish, but they brighten it up

  • with this sliced strawberry, which,

  • I'm intrigued to see how that'll all go together,

  • but it smells amazing.

  • So, the shrimp itself is very buttery and garlicky,

  • but you're still getting that bite

  • from the herbs and spices that they use,

  • and I didn't know if the strawberry

  • would actually work with this dish,

  • but it really does, it brightens it up a bit.

  • And it wouldn't be a Creole restaurant without gumbo.

  • The gumbo is packed with fresh Louisiana shrimp,

  • crab, chicken, beef, filé, and smoked andouille sausage.

  • I'm about to dig into this gumbo.

  • Oh, that chicken.

  • The chicken is so moist, oh, my goodness.

  • It honestly just melts in your mouth.

  • Even though it's in a stew,

  • each part of the gumbo is well seasoned.

  • Stella: Chef Leah Chase, she would tell everybody,

  • "If you ate my Creole gumbo you can solve any problem."

  • When President Obama came, what do you think he had?

  • A bowl of gumbo.

  • Alana: Dooky Chase has long been a pillar

  • of great food as well as agents of great change,

  • and they don't plan on leaving this history in the past.

  • Stella: We want our parents'

  • and our family legacy to continue.

  • Her grandchildren started a foundation

  • in my mother, Leah Chase, and Edgar Chase's name.

  • One of our largest projects for 2019

  • is to open our room upstairs

  • where all the civil rights people met,

  • where our community came together and strategized

  • and tried to figure out ways

  • in which we can live together in one community.

  • Alana: Ridiculously flavorful.

  • I can't speak, I just want to eat.

  • I really just want to eat this, hold on.

Alana Yzola: On a quiet residential block in New Orleans

Subtitles and vocabulary

Click the word to look it up Click the word to find further inforamtion about it